Le leads Leigh as Longhorns move up to the Mt. Hamilton Division

The Leigh Longhorns have proven that they're ready to play football with the big boys.

The Longhorns are up in the bigs this season, back in the Mt. Hamilton Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League after a third-place finish in the Santa Teresa Division last year, where the tougher schedule will be a challenge for the young squad. Leigh lost 11 all-leaguers from its 8-3 season last fall to graduation in the spring.

"We're a very young team," said head coach Kyle Padia. "They're a very talented group, but a young group."

As the Longhorns move up to a higher level of play, they will be relying on players like junior wide receiver Greg Le to take the lead. Le (5-foot-11, 160 pounds) is the only returning player at Leigh who won all-league first team honors in the Santa Teresa Division last fall. He pulled down 25 passes for 365 yards and scored eight touchdowns as a sophomore. Le also crushed it on defense with 28 tackles and three interceptions.

Senior Bryan Duarte (6-0, 205) is returning to the offensive line for the Longhorns. He also spent a little time on defense last year tallying 10 tackles.

Senior Jon Hagen (5-11, 210) is coming back to the defensive line. Hagen was a powerful force in the middle for Leigh with 23 tackles in the trenches.

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Junior linebacker Austin Valentine (5-7, 150) is another strong returner for the Longhorn defense. Valentine had 30 tackles as a sophomore on varsity.

Anthony Chavez (5-8, 180) is also coming back to the defense. This junior was a linebacker as a sophomore on varsity and had 21 tackles.

Senior Dylan Wahl (5-5, 160) roams the middle as a linebacker. He also had 21 tackles last year. Wahl picked off one pass and picked up a fumble for the Leigh defense as a junior.

With such a young squad, the Longhorns will have to rely heavily on new bodies to fuel the fire behind this team. First in that list would have to be junior quarterback Cole Doty (6-foot, 180). Doty is coming up from the frosh-soph squad and expected to be throwing the passes for Leigh. Zach Hott (5-11, 230) will be snapping the ball to Doty. Hott is a junior this year and will spend his time as the center for the Longhorns.

"We have six sophomores on our varsity team this year," said Padia. Chief among those sophomores is Michael Brohn (5-7, 200). Brohn impressed so much as a freshman running back that he will be running for the varsity this season.

Leigh also has senior linebacker Tyler Paulsen (5-8, 160) coming to the defense this year.

"As a coaching staff," said Padia, "we're excited about the opportunity to play the best teams in the Blossom Valley Athletic League."

Returning to the Mt. Hamilton Division could give Leigh a better shot at reaching the Central Coast Section playoffs. Last season, only two Santa Teresa teams--Live Oak and Leigh--reached the postseason while six teams from the Mt. Hamilton circuit advanced.

Last year's CCS appearance was Leigh's 17th since its first trip back in 1986. The Longhorns have reached the finals three times, losing to Wilcox in 1995 and '97 and San Benito in 2000. Six other times Leigh has made it to the semifinals.

The Longhorns open the year at home, hosting rival Branham in a non-league game on Sept. 5 at 7 p.m. Then Leigh takes to the road to battle Westmont on Sept. 12 at 7 p.m. The final game of preseason will be at home against Andrew Hill on Sept. 19, again with a 7 p.m. kickoff.

The first true test will be a difficult one. The Longhorns kick off league play with a team expected to be one of the top two this season: Oak Grove. The Eagles host Leigh on Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. and will quickly test the mettle of Longhorn football.